Abstract Book of the 10th International Conference on Research in Humanities and Social Sciences
Year: 2025
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A Geopolitical Semiotic Analysis of The Evolution of Spatial Strategies of The Chinese Embassy in The UK Since 1877
Zhu Heer
ABSTRACT:
This paper uses geopolitical semiotics as a theoretical framework to systematically sort out the evolution of the spatial strategy of the Chinese Embassy in the UK since 1877. Starting from the two dimensions of spatial topology and architectural symbols, the paper analyzes the changing laws of embassy site selection, architectural style and symbolic practice in the three stages of humiliation in the late Qing Dynasty, sovereignty reconstruction after the founding of the People’s Republic of China, and contemporary strategic game. The study shows that the Chinese embassy space has been dependent on Western-centrism, but has also continuously broken through traditional constraints to achieve the reconstruction of the national image and the transformation of diplomatic discourse. The analysis shows that the transformation of diplomatic space has promoted the reconstruction of the national image and significantly enhanced the country’s soft power, with good results and high performance.
Keywords: Architectural semiosis, Diplomatic power, Geopolitical semiotics, Sovereignty reconstruction, Spatial topology